Traveling cleaner for machinery



Dec. 8, 1936. W, W UNDER 2,063,816

TRAVELING CLEANER FOR MACHINERY ATTORNEY Dec. 8, 1936. w. w. LINDER TRAVELING lCLEANER FOR MACHINERY Filed July 15, 1955 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 W/LL/ W L/NDER INVENTOR ATTORN EY Patented Dec. 8, 1936 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Parks-Cramer Company,

Massachusetts a corporation of Application July 15, 1935, Serial No. 31,422

3 Claims.

This invention relates to apparatus for cleaning textile machinery and comprises a trackway preferably disposed between the rows of machines and having a traveler mounted thereon provided with an electric motor for driving a fan around which is disposed a suitable casing with air ducts leading from the casing for directing blasts of air onto rows of machinery disposed on each side of the trackway.

It is an object of this invention to provide apparatus for cleaning textile machinery and removing therefrom lint and other particles,A which comprises a trackway disposed between parallel rows of machines and having a wheeled traveler mounted lthereon provided with an electric motor for driving the traveler and also for driving an electric fan. A casing is disposed around the fan and has air ducts emanating from the casing for directing blasts of air from the fan onto the machinery disposed on each side thereof. Means are also provided for turning the casing with relation to the motor and fan at specified intervals along the trackway so that the apparatus may pass by obstructions in the mill in which it is located, such as posts, uprights and the like.

It is another Object of this invention to provide apparatus for cleaning machinery comprising a trackway disposed between rows of machines and having` a wheeled electrically driven traveler mounted on the trackway with a disk fan driven by the apparatus and a. casing surrounding the fan with air directing ducts leading therefrom, together with means for turning the casing with relation to the trackway, the turning means comprising projections on the trackway for unlocking the casing from the motor and at the same time having other projections for controlling the moving means for turning the casing a quarter circle to prevent the ducts from striking posts and the like in the mill.

VIt is an object of this invention to provide a machine which may be caused to travel through a room containing textile machinery and during its travel to throw blasts of air upon the machinery and the material in process thereon so that all lint which would otherwise appear on the finished product will be removed.

The invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawings and will be hereinafter fully set forth and defined.

Some of the objects of the invention having been stated, other` objects will appear as the description proceeds, when taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, in which:-

Figure 1 is a view partly in side elevation and partly in longitudinal section of an apparatus embodying the present invention;

Figure 2 is a view partly in plan and partly in horizontal section on the line 2-2 in Figure l;

Figure 3 is a similar view on the line 3-3 of Figure l;

Figure 4 is a View partly in end elevation showing the blast directing ducts arranged at a right angle to the position shown in Figure 1;

Figure 5 is a detail section on the line 5-5 in Figure l.

In carrying out the invention I provide at various points in the work-room standards or other supports I upon which is mounted a track comprising cross bars 2 and rails 3 secured upon upturned ends 4 of the cross bars. Disposed longitudinally of the frame comprising the standards I and the tracks is a channel bar 5 having beds of insulation 6 and in the said beds are placed electric cables 'I to be engaged by plows or shoes 8 to transmit electrical energy from a source of supply to a motor 9. The motor 9 is mounted upon a truck consisting of a bed plate I0 and flanges II depending from the side edges of the bed plate, wheels I2 being suitably mounted upon the flanges to run upon rails 3, as shown clearly in Figure 4, and as will be understood.

In the embodiment of the invention shown in the drawings, the truck is equipped with four wheels, although the exact number of wheels is immaterial, and the forward wheels are mounted on stub axles secured in the flanges II but the rear wheels are carried by a through axle I3 upon which, at the center thereof, is secured a worm gear I4 meshing with a worm I5 formed or rsecured upon the lower end of shaft I6 of the motor 9. The shaft I6 of the motor extends through the top and bottom of the motor casing and on the upper end of said shaft is secured a disk fan or blower I1 which may be of any approved detail design. When the motor is running, the fan II at the upper end of the motor shaft will be rapidly rotated so that a blast of air will be driven through the surrounding casing and the worm I5 will impart motion to the gear I4 and through the same and the axle I3 to the rear wheels I2 so that the truck will be caused to travel along the rails 3 in an obvious manner.

A casing I8 is arranged around the fan and the upper portion of the motor shaft and this casing may be of sheet metal or any other desired material. The main body of the casing is circular when viewed in plan, as shown in Figure 3, and discharge spouts I9 extend from diametrically opposite points of the casing and are turned downwardly so that the air blasts from fan I7 will be discharged downwardly upon the textile machinery or other elements in the work-room upon which cotton is being processed.

It is to be understood that the track 3 is to be laid or constructed so as to extend between rows of machines throughout the entire extent of the work-room, or the track may be disposed above the machines and the truck will be caused to travel along the track above the machine so that the air blasts will be directed downwardly upon the machines and air directed thereon so as to blow the lint and foreign matter therefrom.

Defiectors 2H are provided in the mouths of the discharge spouts so that the air blasts may be controlled and diverted to one side, if so desired. These deflectors may be conveniently in the form of metal plates provided at their upper corners with attaching ears 2l through which securing bolts are passed to secure the deectors in place, it being understood that securing nuts are mounted upon the bolts and turned home against the outer sides of the spouts so as to secure the deectors in the desired position. The deflectors are set at the angle which experience may dictate before the machine starts upon its travel and then being secured will need no further attention unless some abnormal condition arises.

Fixed upon the underside of the fan casing is a locking plate 22 which is provided with quadrantly spaced openings 23 adapted to be engaged by the upper end of a latch 2d in order that the casing may beheld against rotation. The latch Zil is a rod or pin mounted for vertical sliding movement upon the motor casing, as will be understood upon reference to Figure l, and pivoted to the lower end of latch 24 is a trip lever 25 which is fulcrumed between its ends upon a bracket 26 secured upon the truck, the rear end portion of the trip extending downwardly, as clearly shown in Figure 1, so that its extremity may engage and ride over rollers 21 provided at intervals in the length of the track soj that the latch may be automatically released from the locking plate. The latch is held normally in its raised position by a retractile spring 28 secured to the rear end of the trip and to the truck so that the trip may yield to the roller 2T to ride over the same but will be automatically returned to its normal position when the roller has been cleared. The locking plate 22 is disposed concentric With the motor shaft I6 and formed on or secured to said plate is a pinion 29 which meshes with a gear 30 carried on the upper end of a vertical shaft 3l which is mounted in the truck and supported at its upper end by a bracket 32 projecting from the motor casing.

Upon the lower end portion of shaft 3l, immediately above the bed plate l0 of the truck, is a ratchet wheel 33 and loosely tted upon the shaft 3| is a lever 3d having its pivoted end constructed to pass above and below the ratchet wheel, the lower branch or fork of the lever being extended beyond the shaft as indicated in Figure 2 at 35. A retractile spring 36 is attached to this extension and to the truck so that the lever is normally held in position shown in Figure 2. A pawl 37 is pivoted upon the lever in position to engage the ratchet wheel and is yieldably held in engagement with the wheel by an expansion spring 38, as shown, and as will be understood. A stop bracket 3S is secured upon the truck and has its free end disposed in the path of lever 34 so as to limit such movement under the influence of the spring 36 and thereby avoid breakage of the parts and also maintain the parts in operative relation. A finger 49 is pivoted upon the lever 34 adjacent the free end of the same and is yieldably held in a position projecting from the lever over the track by a retractile spring 4l which is attached to the finger and a holding bracket 42 projecting from the side of the lever. At intervals along the track, I secure posts or pins 43 with which the outer end of the finger l0 will come into contact during the travel of the truck, the parts being so arranged that the trip 25 will be rocked by a roller 2 just before the finger 40 imp-inges upon an obstruction 43. The latch 2d will thus be released when the finger engages the obstruction so that the fan casing will then be swung through a quarter of a circle and thereby cause the spouts I9 to pass by obstructions and also to vary the discharge of the air blasts. When the nger 4U impinges upon the obstruction 43, the nger and the lever 36 will be retarded so that they will swing rearwardly relatively to the truck about the shaft 3l and the ratchet wheel 33 will consequently be turned through a part of a revolution. The turning of the ratchet wheel will, of course, be transmitted directly through the shaft 3l and the gear 3i! will consequently transmit motion to the pinion 29 which is fixed to the locking plate 22 and the fan casing so that the fan casing will be rotated. The trip 25 will clear the roller 27 and will then return to its normal position under the influence of the spring 28 but upon return towards normal position the upper end of the latch 24 will impinge against the under surface of the locking plate so that it cannot complete the return movement until a second socket 23 is aligned with the latch. The sockets 23 being placed quadrantly in the locking plate, the fan casing will be permitted to turn through onefourth of a circle and then automatically locked in the new position.

It has been found highly desirable to rotate the fan casing at intervals so as to cause the spouts to pass by obstructions such as posts, and I have provided a very simple and efficient means for automatically accomplishing this result. The provision of the spring 4l permits the finger 40 to turn relative to the lever 34 when meeting and riding past one of the obstructions 43, although movement will be transmitted from the finger to the lever to operate the ratchet wheel through the desired arc, and as soon as the obstruction has been cleared, the finger and the lever will snap back to their normal position. After the truck has passed an obstruction in the mill, such as posts, the lever 4D will engage another pin 43 and turn the casing another quarter circle to return the casing to normal position. Y

From the foregoing description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, it will be seen that I have provided a very simple and compact mechanism which will operate automatically in a highly ecient manner to remove lint and foreign matter from textile machinery and the materi-al in process thereon during the production of cotton yarn or thread and the preparation of the same for the market.

In the drawings and specification there has been set forth a preferred embodiment of the invention, and although specic terms are employed, they are used in a generic and descriptive sense only, and not for purposes of limitation, the scope of the invention being set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An apparatus for the purpose set forth comprising a track, a truck mounted to travel along the track, a fan casing supported by and above the truck, a motor on the truck, a fan in the fan casing driven by the motor, means driven by the motor for propelling the truck, a locking plate on the underside of the fan casing, a latch mounted on the motor and engaging the locking plate to normally prevent turning of the fan casing, a trip lever fulcrumed on the truck and pivoted at one end to the lower end of the latch, yieldable means for holding the latch normally in engagement with the locking plate, obstructions at intervals along the track to be engaged by the trip lever for releasing the latch, and means carried by the truck and connected to the casing for turning the casing relative to the motor in one'direction, and pairs of abutments mounted in spaced relation to each other along the track for engaging the turning means to impart successive quarter turns to the casing each time an abutment is engaged.

2. An apparatus for the purpose set forth comprising a track, a truck mounted to travel along the track, a motor mounted on the truck for propelling the same, a fan casing rotatablyv mounted above the motor, a fan in said fan casing driven by the motor, means for normally holding the fan casing against turning, means on the track and the truck for releasing said holding means at intervals, a shaft mounted vertically on the truck, gearing connecting the upper end of said shaft With the fan casing, a ratchet wheel on the lower end of said shaft, an operating lever mounted concentrically with said ratchet wheel and projecting beyond the truck, a pawl carried by said lever and engaging the ratchet Wheel, obstructions at the side of the track at intervals to be engaged by said lever while said holding means are released whereby the fan casing may be turned, and yieldable means for holding said lever in position to engage the obstructions.

3. Apparatus for cleaning machinery comprising a trackway disposed above the machinery, a wheeled traveler mounted for travel on said trackway, a motor mounted on said traveler and having a vertically disposed shaft projecting upwardly from the motor, a geared connection between the motor shaft and the Wheels of said traveler, a casing having a closed bottom and an open top mounted for rotation with relation to said motor shaft, a fan mounted on the upper end of said shaft, a pair of spouts projecting from opposed sides of the casing and being directed downwardly, a pinion surrounding said shaft and secured to the housing, a vertically disposed shaft mounted on the traveler and having a pinion on its upper end in engagement with the pinion on the housing, means for turning said vertically disposed shaft to impart rotation to said housing and consisting of a. ratchet wheel mounted on said vertically disposed shaft, a lever mounted for turning movement on said vertically disposed shaft, a dog on said lever for engaging said ratchet Wheel, spaced abutments on said trackway for imparting intermittent turning movement to the housing as it travels along the trackway.

WILLIS W. LINDER. n 

